Separating screen

ABSTRACT

In a cleaning apparatus of the type comprising a plurality of rotating beaters the improvement comprising a plurality of arcuate plates having apertures formed therein, each arcuate plate extending to a pair of opposed shoulders which are received in slideways that position the arcuate plate directly beneath and extending parallel to one of the beaters.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention comprises a separating screen useful in a varietyof cleaning operations.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1 there is shown a separating screen 10 of the typeillustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,762,171. The '171 patentdiscloses and claims a cleaning apparatus comprising a plurality ofrotary beaters which function, for example, to separate various types ofhulls, bran, pepper, shale, dirt, and other types and kinds of debrisfrom cotton lint. Each of the rotary beaters has a separating screen 10positioned directly thereunder. Each separating screen 10 comprises anarcuate plate 12 having a plurality of apertures 14 formed therethrough.Cotton hulls, bran pepper, shale, dirt, etc., pass through the apertures14 thereby separating various kinds of unwanted debris from thecontaminated cotton lint resulting in purer cellulose (lint).

The arcuate plate 12 of the screen 10 is supported on side panels 16which extend to a drawer panel 18. Slideways are supported on the sidepanel 16 and function to support the arcuate plate 14, the side panels16, and the drawer panel 18 for sliding movement outwardly and inwardlyrelative to the lint cleaning apparatus in the manner of a conventionaldrawer.

The cleaning apparatus of the '171 patent requires the use of multipleseparating screens, for example, a first set of eight relatively largeseparating screens and a second set of eight relatively small separatingscreens. Moreover, most cleaning operations require the purchase andmaintenance of several sets of relatively large cleaning screens andseveral sets of relatively small cleaning screens which aredifferentiated one from another by different sizes of separatingapertures 14. It will therefore be understood that the complexity of thedrawer 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 and described hereinabove addssignificantly to the cost of currently available cleaning operations.

The present invention comprises an improved separating screen designwhich overcomes the foregoing and other disadvantages which have longsince characterized the prior art. In accordance with the broaderaspects of the invention a separating screen for use in cleaningapparatuses comprises an arcuate plate having separating aperturesformed therethrough. One end of the arcuate plate is provided with alarge aperture which serves as a handle. The arcuate plate extends to apair of normally horizontally disposed shoulders which extend outwardlyfrom the opposite edges of the arcuate plate. The shoulders are slidablyreceived in slideways mounted on the frame of the cleaning apparatus tofacilitate sliding movement of the perforating screen outwardly andinwardly relative to its operating position.

The separating screen of the present invention is useful in a widevariety of cleaning operations including:

Canola, separating the hull from the meat; Sunflower, separating thehull from the meat; Cottonseed, separating the hull from the meat;Soybean, separating the hull from the meat; Lint, separating thecellulose from the trash, shale, pepper, fines, etc.; Whole seedcleaning including groundnut, cotton, saffola, castor, sunflower,canola, soybean, mustard, etc. Other cleaning processes utilizingseparating screens are well known to those skilled in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of the present invention may be had byreference to the following Detailed Description when taken inconjunction with the accompanying Drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a prior art separating screen;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of a lint cleaning apparatusincorporating the separating screen of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an enlargement of a portion of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the separating screen of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5-5 in FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawings, and in particular to FIGS. 4 and 5thereof, there is shown a separating screen 20 comprising the presentinvention. The separating screen 20 comprises an arcuate plate 22 havinga multiplicity of screening apertures formed therethrough. As will beappreciated by those skilled in the art, the screening apertures 24 canand will comprise a variety of sizes and shapes depending upon therequirements of particular applications of the invention. A largeaperture 26 is formed through one end of the arcuate plate 22 and servesas a handle for manipulating the separating screen 20 outwardly andinwardly relative to its operating position in a lint cleaningapparatus.

Referring particularly to FIG. 5, the arcuate plate 22 extends to a pairof opposed shoulders 26. The shoulders 26 support the arcuate plate 22for sliding movement outwardly and inwardly relative to its operatingposition. The shoulders 26 being a common plane which is parallel to theaxis 28 of the arcuate plate 22.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate a component of a cleaning apparatusincorporating the present invention. A frame 30 supports a plurality ofbearings 32 which in turn support a plurality of beaters 34 for rotationabout their respective longitudinal axes. Each of the beaters 34 has aseparating screen 20 comprising the present invention positioneddirectly thereunder. The screens 20 are slidably supported on slideways36 which are in turn supported on the frame 30. More particularly, theopposed shoulders 26 of each separating screen 20 engage the slideways36 mounted on the frame 30 to support the separating screen 20 forsliding movement outwardly and inwardly relative to the frame 30.

Referring particularly to FIG. 3, a separating screen 20 comprising thepresent invention is shown in its operating position. The screen 20 isslid inwardly relative to the frame 30 as far as possible such that onlythe end of the screen 20 comprising the handle 26 is exposed. In thismanner the separating apertures 24 of the screen 20 are positioneddirectly under the rotating beater 34 associated therewith to facilitatethe disengagement of cotton seeds and various types and kinds of debrisfrom the cotton lint being processed by the lint cleaning apparatus.

A plurality of pusher plates 38 are supported on the frame 30. Each ofthe pusher plates 38 is associated with one of the cleaning screens 20.The pusher plates 38 function to prevent movement of the cleaningscreens 20 relative to the frame 30 after the cleaning screens 20 havebeen fully seeded in the slideways 36 as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Although preferred embodiments of the invention have been illustrated inthe accompanying Drawings and described in the foregoing DetailedDescription, it will be understood that the invention is not limited tothe embodiments disclosed, but is capable of numerous rearrangements,modifications, and substitutions of parts and elements without departingfrom the spirit of the invention.

1. For use in conjunction with a lint cleaning apparatus of the typecomprising a frame, bearings mounted on the frame, and at least onebeater rotatably supported by the bearings for separating cotton lintfrom cotton seeds and debris, the improvement comprising: a separatorscreen comprising an arcuate plate having a multiplicity of aperturesformed therein for receiving therethrough cotton seeds and debrisseparated from cotton lint by the beater and a pair of shoulders formedintegrally with and extending laterally outwardly from the oppositeedges of the arcuate plate; opposed slideways mounted on the frame forreceiving the shoulders extending from the arcuate plate and therebyslidably supporting the arcuate plate beneath and extending parallel tothe rotating beater; and means for securing the separating screenagainst movement relative to the frame.
 2. A lint cleaning apparatuscomprising: a frame; bearing means supported on a frame; a beater havingan axis and supported by the bearing means for rotation about said axis;the rotation of the beater causing separation of cotton lint from cottonseeds and debris; a pair of opposed slideways mounted on the frame andextending below and parallel to the axis of the beater; an arcuate platehaving a plurality of apertures formed therein for receiving cottonseeds and debris therethrough; the arcuate plate extending to a pair ofopposed shoulders formed integrally with the arcuate plate and extendingin opposite direction from the opposite edges thereof; the slideways forslidably receiving the shoulders of the arcuate plate and therebypositioning the arcuate plate directly beneath and extending parallel tothe rotating beater; and means for securing the arcuate plate againstmovement relative to the frame.